1.This Act shall be cited as the
Humphrey-Hawkins 21st Century Full
Employment and Training Act
or the Work Opportunities and Revitalizing Our Communities
Act
.
2.In this Act the following definitions
apply:
(1)The term Indian
tribe has the meaning given such term in section 102(17) of the Housing
and Community Development Act (42 U.S.C. 5302(17)).
(2)The
term Secretary means the Secretary of Labor.
(3)The term small
business has the meaning given the term small business
concern under section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
632).
(4)The term State has the meaning
given such term in section 102(2) of the Housing and Community Development Act
(42 U.S.C. 5302(2)).
(5)The term Trust
Fund refers to the Full Employment Trust Fund established under section
3.
(6)Unit of general
local governmentThe term
unit of general local government has the meaning given such term
in section 102(1) of the Housing and Community Development Act (42 U.S.C.
5302(1)).
(7)The term urban
county has the meaning given such term in section 102(6) of the Housing
and Community Development Act (42 U.S.C. 5302(6)).
3.Establishment Of
Full Employment National Trust Fund
(a)The Secretary shall
establish a Full Employment National Trust Fund (in this Act referred to as the
Trust Fund
) for the purposes of—
(1)providing funding for the Employment
Opportunity Grants established in section 4; and
(2)issuing funds to the Secretary to fund the
Workforce Investment Act (29 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.).
(b)Subject to the
availability of appropriations for this purpose, the Secretary of the Treasury
shall annually make available to the Secretary of Labor for deposit into the
Trust Fund an amount equal to the amount collected for that year through the
tax described in section 4475 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as added by
section 7.
(c)Separate Trust
Fund AccountsThe Trust Fund
shall consist of 2 separate accounts as follows:
(1)One account shall
consist of 67 percent of the funds made available for deposit under subsection
(b) and shall be for the Employment Opportunity Grants established in section
4.
(2)The other account shall consist of 33
percent of the funds made available for deposit under subsection (b) and shall
be available to the Secretary to fund programs under the Workforce Investment
Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.).
(d)The Secretary shall establish an Internet Web site to serve
as an information clearinghouse for job training and employment opportunities
funded by the Trust Fund.
(e)The Secretary shall promulgate regulations to encourage
entities that receive funds under programs under the Workforce Investment Act
of 1998 (20 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.) that are funded by the account described in
subsection (c)(2) to, whenever possible, establish a training stipend for
individuals who participate in such programs.
4.Employment
opportunity grants to States, local government, and Indian tribes
(a)Employment
grants contingent on level of unemploymentSubject to the
availability of funds in the Trust Fund for activities under this section, if,
at the beginning of a fiscal year, the economy is not at a level of full
employment, as determined by the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, the
Secretary shall make grants for such fiscal year, in amounts totaling 90
percent of such funds available, to States, units of general local government,
and Indian tribes to carry out activities in accordance with this
section.
(b)Grants
made under this section shall be for creating employment opportunities for
unemployed and underemployed residents of distressed communities in activities
designed to address community needs and reduce disparities in health, housing,
education, job readiness, and public infrastructure that have impeded these
communities from realizing their full economic potential.
(c)A recipient of a grant under this section shall use the
grant for the following purposes:
(1)During the initial
9-month period in which grants are made under this section, each grant shall be
used only to fund the following types of fast-track job placements:
(A)The painting and
repair of schools, community centers, and libraries.
(B)The restoration
and revitalization of abandoned and vacant properties to alleviate blight in
distressed and foreclosure-affected areas of a unit of general local
government.
(C)The expansion of
emergency food programs to reduce hunger and promote family stability.
(D)The augmentation
of staffing in Head Start, child care, and other early childhood education
programs to promote school readiness and early literacy.
(E)The renovation and
enhancement of maintenance of parks, playgrounds, and other public
spaces.
(2)Following the 9-month period described in
paragraph (1), a recipient of a grant may use the remaining amount of the grant
to assist public entities, nonprofit community-based organizations,
public-private partnerships, or small businesses to create opportunities for
employment in the following areas:
(A)Construction,
re-construction, rehabilitation, and site improvements of residences or public
facilities, including improvements in the energy efficiency or environmental
quality of such public facilities or residences.
(B)Provision of human
services, including child care services, health care services, education, or
recreational programs.
(C)The remediation
and demolition of vacant and abandoned properties to eliminate blight.
(D)Programs that
provide disadvantaged youth with opportunities for employment, education,
leadership development, entrepreneurial skills development, and
training.
(3)Providing
supplemental labor for existing federally or State-funded infrastructure
projects.
(4)Providing
supplemental labor for existing federally or State-funded projects aimed at
expanding access to broadband or wireless Internet service.
(d)Each grant recipient
shall consult with community leaders, including labor organizations, nonprofit
community-based organizations, local government officials, and local residents
to—
(1)assess the needs
of the community served by the grant recipient;
(2)determine sectors
of the local economy that are in need of employees;
(3)make
recommendations for new employment opportunities in the areas described in
paragraph (3); and
(4)assess the
effectiveness of job placements made under paragraph (1).
(e)As
a condition of receiving a grant under this section, a grant recipient
shall—
(1)agree to comply
with the nondiscrimination policy set forth under section 109 of the Housing
and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5309);
(2)allocate not less
than 80 percent of the funding allocated to each project funded under the grant
to wages, benefits, and support services, including child care services, for
individuals employed on such project;
(3)ensure that
employment on any project funded under the grant is carried out in accordance
with subsection (c);
(4)institute an
outreach program with community organizations and service providers in
low-income communities to provide information about placements funded under the
grant to individuals suited to perform community infrastructure work;
and
(5)ensure that not
less than 35 percent of individuals employed under the grant are individuals
described in paragraph (4)(B) of subsection (f).
(f)Employment funded under this section shall meet the
following specifications:
(1)Any employer that
employs an individual whose employment is funded under the grant shall—
(A)employ such
individual for not less than 12 months;
(B)employ such
individual for not less than 30 hours per week;
(C)comply with
responsible contractor standards, as determined by the relevant official in the
unit of local general government;
(D)provide
compensation to such individual equal to that which is paid to employees who
have been employed to perform similar work prior to the date such individual
was hired; and
(E)if such employment
is in construction, provide compensation to any laborer or mechanic employed
under the grant at rates not less than those prevailing on similar construction
in the locality as determined by the Secretary of Labor in accordance with
subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United States Code.
(2)No individual
whose employment is funded under the grant may work for an employer at which a
collective bargaining agreement is in effect covering the same or similar work,
unless—
(A)the consent of the
union at such employer is obtained; and
(B)negotiations have
taken place between such union and the employer as to the terms and conditions
of such employment.
(3)An individual
whose employment is funded under this Act may not displace other employees
whose employment is not funded under this Act. A grant recipient under this Act
may not hire an employee or employees with funds under this Act for any
employment which the grant recipient would otherwise hire an employee who has
been furloughed.
(4)An individual
whose employment is funded under this Act shall be—
(A)unemployed for not
less than 26 weeks prior to the receipt of the grant, as verified by the State
or local department of labor, department of welfare, or similar office charged
with maintaining records of unemployment; or
(B)unemployed for not
less than 30 days prior to the receipt of the grant and be a low-income
individual who is a member of a targeted group (as defined by section 51(d) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) as verified by the State or local department
of labor, department of welfare, or similar office charged with maintaining
records of unemployment.
For purposes
of subparagraph (B), the hiring date (as defined in section 51(d)(11) of such
Code) shall be the hiring date by an employer who receives a grant pursuant to
this section.(g)
(1)In selecting a project to receive funding for employing
the individuals described in subsection (f)(4), a grant recipient shall
consider—
(A)the input of all
participants in a proposed project, including labor organizations, community
organizations, and employers;
(B)the needs of the
community intended to benefit from such project;
(C)the long-term
goals and short-term objectives to address such needs; and
(D)any
recommendations for programs and activities developed to meet such
needs.
(2)Priority given
to certain projectsA grant recipient under this section shall
give priority to projects that—
(A)serve areas with
the greatest level of economic need, determined for each such area by—
(i)the
unemployment rate;
(ii)the
rate of poverty;
(iii)the number of
census tracts with concentrated poverty;
(iv)the
lowest median income;
(v)the
percentage of vacant and abandoned properties;
(vi)the
percentage of home foreclosures; and
(vii)the indicators
of poor resident health, including high rates of chronic disease, infant
mortality, and life expectancy;
(B)integrate
education and job skills training, including basic skills instruction and
secondary education services;
(C)coordinate to the
maximum extent feasible with pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs;
and
(D)provide jobs in
sectors where job growth is most likely, as determined by the Secretary, and in
which career advancement opportunities exist to maximize long-term, sustainable
employment for individuals after employment funded under this Act ends.
(h)
(1)Grants for
Indian tribes and deposits into discretionary fundNot more than
5 percent of the funds available in the Trust Fund for activities under this
section for any fiscal year shall be reserved for grants to Indian tribes and
for deposit into a discretionary fund established by the Secretary for national
demonstration projects and multi-jurisdictional projects.
(2)Not more than 30
percent of the funds available in the Trust Fund for activities under this
section for any fiscal year shall be allocated to States to distribute to units
of general local government that do not qualify for funds under paragraph
(3).
(3)Grants to units
of general local governmentGrant funds that are not reserved
under paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be allocated to metropolitan cities and
urban counties using the formula under section 106(b) of the Housing and
Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5306(b)).
(i)
(1)Reports by grant
recipientsNot later than 90 days after the last day of each
fiscal year in which assistance under this section is furnished, a recipient of
a grant under this section shall submit to the Secretary a report containing
the following:
(A)A description of
the progress made in accomplishing the objectives of this chapter.
(B)A summary of the
use of the grant during the preceding fiscal year.
(C)For units of
general local government, a listing of each entity receiving funds and the
amount of such grants, as well as a brief summary of the projects funded for
each such unit, the extent of financial participation by other public or
private entities, and the impact on employment and economic activity of such
projects during the previous fiscal year.
(D)For States, a
listing of each unit of general local government receiving funds and the amount
of such grants, as well as a brief summary of the projects funded for each such
unit, the extent of financial participation by other public or private
entities, and the impact on employment and economic activity of such projects
during the previous fiscal year.
(E)The amount of
money received and expended during the fiscal year.
(F)The number of
individuals assisted under the grant whose household income is low-income, very
low-income, or extremely low-income (as such terms are used for purposes of the
Housing Act of 1937 and the regulations there under (42 U.S.C. 1437 et
seq.)).
(G)The amount
expended on administrative costs during the fiscal year.
(2)At least once every 6 months, the Secretary shall submit
to Congress a report on the use of grants awarded under this section and any
progress in job creation.
5.National
Employment Conference
(a)The Secretary shall
convene a national employment conference not later than 1 year after the date
of enactment of this Act, to bring together leaders of small, medium, and large
businesses, labor, government, and all other interested parties.
(b)The
subject of the conference shall be employment, with particular attention to
structural unemployment and the plight of disadvantaged youth. The conference
shall also focus on issues such as adequate and effective incentives for
employers to hire the long-term unemployed.
6.Inclusion of
minority-serving, community-based organizations in WIA State and local
workforce investment Boards
(a)Section
111(b)(1)(C)(v) of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C.
2821(b)(1)(C)(v)) is amended by inserting before the semicolon
(including not less than 25 percent of the chief executive officers of
minority-serving, community-based organizations)
.
(b)Section
117(b)(2)(A)(iv) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 2832(b)(2)(A)(iv)) is amended by
inserting , and not less than 25 percent of the chief executive officers
of minority-serving, community-based organizations
after
present
.
7.Tax on securities
transactions
(a)Chapter 36 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting after subchapter B the
following new subchapter:
CTax on securities
transactions
Sec. 4475. Tax on securities transactions.
4475.Tax on
securities transactions
(a)There is hereby imposed a
tax on each covered securities transaction an amount equal to the applicable
percentage of the value of the security involved in such transaction.
(b)The tax imposed by this section shall be paid by the trading
facility on which the transaction occurs.
(c)For purposes of this section, the term
applicable percentage means 0.25 percent.
(d)Covered
securities transactionThe term covered securities
transaction means—
(1)any transaction to which subsection (b),
(c), or (d) of section 31 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 applies,
and
(2)any transaction subject to the exclusive
jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
(e)The
Secretary shall carry out this section in consultation with the Securities and
Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading
Commission.
.
(b)The table of subchapters for chapter 36 of such Code is
amended by inserting after the item relating to subchapter B the following new
item:
Subchapter C. Tax on securities
transactions.
.
(c)The amendments made by this subsection shall apply to sales
occurring more than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.